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Floods hit Bekasi housing complex as embankment collapses
Residents were worried the collapse would lead to more severe floods.
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Residents help a bajaj (three-wheeled taxi) cross a flooded stretch of Jl. Raya Kali Abang Tengah in Bekasi, West Java on Feb. 15. (Antara/Risky Andrianto)
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river embankment by the Cahaya Kemang Permai housing complex in Jatikramat subdistrict, Bekasi, West Java collapsed after heavy rain hit the city on Thursday evening, resulting in flooding in the residential area.
The embankment, 2 meters tall and 15 centimeters thick, was unable to hold back the waters of the swollen Jatikramat River.
"The collapse happened during the Maghrib prayer time [at about 6 p.m.], while it was raining heavily," resident Jasmun said on Friday, as reported by tempo.co.
Jasmun said the collapse let water inundate people's homes, with water levels reaching 70 cm high. Residents were worried the collapse would lead to even more severe flooding.
He said the collapse began as the water volume in the river increased significantly. The 12-meter-long embankment had to endure greater pressure as a bridge between two residential areas partially blocked the flow of water.
A number of residents said the embankment wall had been made higher a few months earlier as the water volume of the river had kept increasing.
Bekasi Disaster Mitigation Agency deputy head Karsono confirmed that floods had hit some residents' homes along the Jatikramat River because of the heavy rain on Thursday. (ars)
